Better result than I expected. Freddie King was one of the most influential blues guitarists. The Beastie Boys pioneered punk/hip hop and the Faces were the world's greatest bar band. G 'n' R self-destructed right along w/ Axl and the Chili Peppers have been wildly inconsistent--but their massive commercial appeal justifies induction. Laura Nyro is an interesting choice--part songwriter, part performer, mostly forgotten. Donovan is a mystery--one hit wonders get inducted now?

Those passed over? Erik B. and Rakim, Donna Summer and The Cure deserve induction, and will get in eventually. Heart would seem to have the commercial appeal to get in, whether they deserve it or not. Joan Jett and the Spinners should get in--but probably will not.

Thank you for your columns on this subject. As a letter writer noted yesterday, the Common Council voted down the only serious proposal to have the city clear sidewalks in 1993. I agree with many of the commenters that an increase in neighborliness (looking out for those unable to shovel due to age or disability) is a key to dealing with the problem of impassable sidewalks.

A couple other facets of the problem we need to deal with:

1,800 vacant houses--half of them clustered in an area with only 15% of the city's residential households--the south, and near west sides. Many are totally abandoned.

60% of city properties are tenant occupied. Tenants and landlords point fingers at each other when determining responsibility for shoveling.

Thanks for being around the length of time needed to do both of these columns! I'm finding as I get older that Woody Allen's statement about "90% of life is showing up" to be only partially true. A large part is sticking around as well.

I grew up in the eastern suburbs and moved away in 1978 to go to college--figuring I'd never be coming back. By 1985, I was back in town and living in the University neighborhood--a place with nothing but great memories from growing up. I've never left--25 years in the city, essentially in the same neighborhood.

I love the little things about Syracuse--the interesting streets, neighborhoods, parks. I love being in a place that is small enough that you feel grounded, but large enough that you don't feel constrained. Friends from big cities are always telling me about the many things their cities have that they assume Syracuse lacks--culture, restaurants etc. I've generally found that Syracuse has most things that attract people to large cities. I love the people in Syracuse. We are tough, resilient, generous and friendly.

In the end, I love Syracuse because it's my hometown. I was born in the old Memorial Hospital on the Hill, met my wife when we worked together at an insurance co. on James Street. We got married at St. Anthony's church on the south side. My parents both graduated from S.U., were married at St. Alban's on Meadowbrook and are buried in White Chapel Gardens off Erie Blvd. I wouldn't live anywhere else.

In his later years in the Senate, Moynihan loved to poke fun at his more rural and conservative colleagues by prefacing his remarks with a true statement "as the only member of the U.S. Senate who lives on a working farm . . ."

Moynihan was the architect of one of the most audacious policy initiatives of recent times--a guaranteed national income proposed by the Nixon admin. Called the Family Assistance Program, it guaranteed a stipend to families with children, the only other qualification being citizenship. It actually passed the House but died in Senate committee.

It would have ended all the debates and stigma about welfare, and most importantly ended the breakup of families, fathers being forced out of the home to qualify the wife and kids for welfare. Coupled with a negative income tax that takes away the benefit on a sliding scale as your outside income rose, the idea would have had a major impact on our society.

the common thread that all these stories have is the grace and equanimity that all these players showed in the face of what might have been seen as a disaster, continuing to live their lives, dusting themselves off and carrying on.

As for Galarraga, I believe that he should be this year's SI Sportsman of the Year--no one has better exemplified the notion that sports can teach you about how to be a better person and how to live your life than the Detroit pitcher.

Great piece Sean. As a kid, I always marvelled at Harvey Haddix and his 12 + inning perfect game--that he ended up losing in the 13th. He seemed to deal with it as well--when MLB changed their ruling so the record books didn't even show the no-hitter for 9 innings, he replied "That's OK. I know what I did."

Haddix also had a pretty decent career--he was the winning pitcher in the Pirates 1960 Game 7 victory, made 3 all-star games and 3 gold gloves. And the amazing thing (according to Wikipedia) the Braves were stealing signs off Haddix's catcher all night during his near perfect game--and he dominated them.

If Dane Cook is so "hot" and "cool" why does he use his "hawkeye" on human behavior mainly to rip off better comedians--like Louis CK? Don't believe the hype. Cook is the first social media comedian--building his career on the internet, relentlessly networking--not for saying anything remotely funny.

Thankfully, the Steve Effler's of the world triumphed in the end over the petty bureaucrats that valued quick fixes and contracts for their corporate buddies over real science and dignity for struggling low income neighborhoods. They threatened folks with monstrous raw sewage treatment plants and the introduction of toxic chlorine into Onondaga Creek. Thanks to US Rep. Maffei, the first elected federal official to stand up for our neighborhoods instead of kowtowing to the local morons in County government. Thank you to Joanie Mahoney for walking the County away from its prior disastrous policies. Most of all, thanks to the neighborhood folks in the Partnership For Onondaga Creek that fought for years and diminished the worst of the sewage plant policy--setting the stage for this partial end stage victory.

PS: Remind me again why we honored Nick Pirro by naming a great public building after him? Pirro showed nothing but contempt for our neighborhoods.